Details of the event, which could be UFC 112, were not disclosed, though plans for an Abu Dhabi show have been in the pipeline for the past couple months. Last month at UFC 105, UFC U.K. Division President Marshall Zelaznik told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) the organization had been working on an Abu Dhabi event for 2010.

UFC president Dana White and UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta have also recently traveled to the Middle East to meet with officials about the show.

Abu Dhabi is the capital of the United Arab Emirates and one of the Middle East’s most Westernized cities. The country is home to nearly a million residents, and Abu Dhabi has become a popular tourism center under Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who’s also a jiu-jitsu practitioner with ties to the Gracie family.

Hughes first announced his April 10 return earlier this month with a post on his official Web site. On Thursday he again took to matt-hughes.com to confirm the likely (though un-signed) fight with Gracie.

“I didn’t know if I could say anything about my next fight, but I see that Dana has let the cat out of the bag,” Hughes wrote. “So I can tell you what I know. On April 10, I will be fighting Renzo Gracie in Abu Dhabi. I haven’t signed any paperwork, and I don’t think Renzo has either. But I think this fight is going to happen.”

Hughes, who had two memorable title runs at welterweight, hasn’t fought since his decision victory over Matt Serra at UFC 98 in July. He rebounded from back-to-back losses to Georges St-Pierre and Thiago Alves with the win. The 35-year-old is just 2-3 over the past three years with victories over non-contenders Chris Lytle and Serra.
In 2006 he defeated Royce Gracie, Renzo’s first cousin, at UFC 60.

Gracie, a former PRIDE and IFL fighter, enters the UFC with a three-fight win streak, though he hasn’t fought since his February 2007 disqualification win over Frank Shamrock at “EliteXC: Destiny.” The 42-year-old had lost six of seven fights before the recent win streak, which also included wins over Pat Miletich and Carlos Newton.

For the latest on all future rumored cards, including the possible UFC 112 event, check out the UFC Rumors section of MMAjunkie.com.

A total of 26 fighters got their chance to shine on Saturday as part of UFC 190 at Rio de Janeiro’s HSBC Arena. Now that UFC 190 is in the books, it’s time to commence MMAjunkie’s “Three Stars” ceremony.

The man known for cranking submissions to the point of injury added eye-gouging to his repertoire. But is the controversy of Rousimar Palhares too essential to his bizarre, awful appeal for his employers to take any meaningful action against him?